After the War
by Sara Jaye
Summary: A collection of post-series ficlets, drabbles and vignettes.
1. What If

Energybending had seemed like the perfect solution at the time. Winning the battle without having to spill a man's blood, doing it his way.

Years later, Aang wasn't so sure. Was it truly better to take a man's power than to take his life?

Zuko had hoped Ozai's loss of bending and time in prison would put him on a better path, and during the last few years of the former Phoenix King's life, he seemed to be going in that direction. Ozai would never be the good man his son and brother were, but he'd mellowed in his old age, even (grudgingly) acknowledged Zuko as the superior Fire Lord.

But there were many ways it could have gone wrong.

"What if he broke out of prison and tried to start another war?" he asked. "What if the lion-turtle was wrong and all I did was take his bending away temporarily?" He shuddered. "Or what if I'd done it wrong, or his aura was stronger than mine...? I could've _killed_ myself!"

Katara sighed, placing their seven month old son in his cradle, and sat behind him on their bed.

"I wish you would stop doing this," she said, rubbing his shoulders. "Any of those things could have happened, but they _didn't_. You saved the world your way, and that's what matters."

"I just don't know...all the Avatars of the past told me only justice could bring peace, I kinda feel like I let them down by not listening," Aang said.

"You wouldn't have been able to master the Avatar State if you had," Katara reminded him.

"True. Still, I did a pretty dangerous thing. It could've been me lying on the ground weak and powerless that day."

"But it _wasn't_." She moved to sit next to him, and he leaned his head against her shoulder. "Aang, don't waste time going over all the what-ifs. Focus on what was, what is, and always will be."

"I know..."

"You ended the war without taking a man's life," Katara said. "The world has been at peace ever since then with no sign of any future wars." She cupped his cheek in her hand and tilted his face up, pressing a brief kiss to his lips. "And I love you."

"What was, what is, and what always will be?" he repeated.

"Now you're getting it!" she laughed.

"Thanks, Katara. Even now you still always manage to talk some sense into me," he said.

"Good. Now, let's move onto more important matters, should we?" Katara smirked. "I think it's high time Gyatso had a little brother or sister, don't you?"

"Think we'll get lucky and have twins this time?" Aang asked hopefully. She gave him a look.

"Only the one who doesn't have to carry them would call it lucky!"

"Hey, the Air Nomads aren't gonna repopulate themselves. Hey, what if we have-"

"If you say triplets, I'm sleeping on the couch tonight," she warned. "That's definitely a 'what if' I don't want to think about."

"Hehe, sorry?"

As they continued to banter, Avatar Roku watched from a distance and sighed.

_Crazy kids. I'm glad Ta Min and I were never that silly at their age._


	2. Again

_If you could do it all over again, what would you do differently?_

A person asked themselves that question, or were asked that question, at least once in a lifetime. Nearing the ripe age of fifty, Aang finds himself wondering at least twice a day. If he'd accepted his destiny, he could have helped end the war and saved the world from a century of suffering at the hands of the Fire Nation. Perhaps Gyatso would still be alive.

Even now he still feels a sting of guilt for not being there when it happened.

But would he have still been able to meet Katara, Sokka, Zuko, Toph and everyone else who helped him when he finally did accept his destiny? Aang doesn't want to imagine life without them, especially Katara. Even at the tender age of twelve, he knew it was love at first sight when he woke up in her arms. She was his best friend, his teacher, his confidante.

He gazes at her as she sleeps peacefully against him.

_If you could do it all over again, what would you do differently?_

Katara stirs a bit in her sleep, nestling her face further into the crook of his neck, and Aang smiles. The answer is what it always was and always will be.

_Not a thing._


	3. Always A Chance

No change, they'd said. Just like the last time he'd been to check on Azula in the mental facility. No change, she wasn't ready for visitors, it's going to take a long time.

"It's been almost a year," Zuko sighed. "Some days I wonder if it'd have just been easier to put her out of her misery."

Mai frowned, her grip on his shoulder tightening almost painfully.

"What do _you_ think, Zuko? Would killing your only sister really be easier than letting her live in madness?" she challenged.

"Yes, sometimes I think it would!" he retorted. "At least then she wouldn't be suffering anymore!"

"But you would be," Mai said. "If you killed Azula, you'd kill a little of yourself and then _you_ would be the one going insane. Face it, Zuko..." She smiled a little. "You're_ way_ too nice to kill your own family members."

He sighed, looking down at his hands.

"You're right. But I hate this," he said. "I can stop a war and bring peace to the four nations, I can rule a country. But I can't do anything to help my only sister." He smiled sadly. "You know what my father said yesterday? He actually blames himself for what happened to Azula. _Former Firelord Ozai_, the most power-hungry jerk in the land, actually admitted feeling guilty. To the son he never liked, even!" Zuko laughed, but it sounded suspiciously like an oncoming sob. "I never thought I'd see the day, Mai, I...I never..."

"Damn it, Zuko." She released her grip on his shoulder and wrapped her arms around him. "Stop doing this to yourself. Azula has to overcome this on her own, there's nothing anyone can do for her at this point. When she's ready, hopefully she'll be ready to see us again."

Zuko drew her close, burying his face in her hair.

"You think she'll come out of this a better person? Or at least not a psycho?" he murmured.

"There's always a chance."

He laughed, a more genuine sound this time.

"No wonder I love you so much. You always manage to make me feel better!" he said. Mai blushed, rolling her eyes.

"You're such a sappy dork, Zuko."

"Yeah, I know."

She closed her eyes, reaching up to ruffle the hair at the back of his head.

"I kinda like that about you, though," she said, and kissed him.


	4. Always You

From the time they first met, Aang had always had a feeling he would marry Katara someday. Or at the very least hoped so.

What had started as a mother-child relationship when she first found him quickly developed into something more as he became less of a child and her more a _girl_ in his eyes. Over the course of the war their relationship deepened, formed layers of uncertainty and doubt; even when their feelings took a back seat to important matters she was the constant, the part of his life he couldn't..._didn't_ want to imagine living without.

He would never forget that day, several weeks after the end of the war when they'd finally confessed their love on the veranda outside the Jasmine Dragon. Five years later, he stood with her on that very veranda.

"Katara," he began, "we've been through a lot together, haven't we? Not just as a couple, as friends and teammates and family..."

"We have," she said. "Sometimes I can hardly believe it, it seems like just yesterday Sokka and I found you in that iceberg." She laughed. "And now look at us."

"Yeah..." He swallowed, suddenly feeling nervous and thirteen again. "Uh, Katara, I brought you here tonight because there's something I wanna ask you," he stammered. "Katara, you've always been the only girl I'll ever love." He drew something from the folds of his cloak. "Here...this is the only thing I can think of to give you," he said. Gently, she took the delicate silver bracelet; from it hung a small charm with the Air Nomads' symbol carved into the surface.

"Aang, it's beautiful," she whispered as he helped her put it on. "But why..."

He cleared his throat.

"Please be my wife?"

"Yes! Of course I will!" Katara squealed, throwing her arms around him. Just like that day five years ago, only this time there was no hesitation as he kissed her.


	5. Because

"Mai?" Zuko prompted. "I know you're almost asleep but...mind if I ask you something?"

"Mm?" Mai propped her head up on her hands and opened her eyes. "What's on your mind?"

Zuko sighed.

"Today wasn't such a good day. I got a good look first hand at just how bad things got since my great-grandfather Sozin started the war...and I got to thinking about myself, how it took me sixteen years to get my head out of my butt. I've done a lot of bad stuff over the years, Mai," he said, and she frowned.

"Zuko, don't start this again," she yawned. "It's water under the bridge, you're different now and so's the Fire Nation."

"I know, I know." He chuckled ruefully. "But sometimes I wonder, after I barely wrote to you during my exile, after I ditched you with a note, all the times I annoyed you...how can you still like me so much? You stood up to my _sister_, you're not someone who lets people push her around and forgives them for it."

Mai rolled her eyes and moved over to lean against him.

"Believe me, Zuko, if you were as bad a guy as you think you are I wouldn't have fallen for you in the first place," she said. "Yeah, you might be stubborn and slow to learn, you're a hothead, you're a total dweeb..." She smiled and pressed a kiss to his chin. "But you're also a sweet guy who stayed in a place he was miserable just to be close to me..." Her lips moved upwards, this time pressing against his cheek. "And cared enough about the fate of the world to ditch me. And just so you know, if you'd _explained_ your reasons I would've understood."

Zuko blushed, wrapping his arms tightly around her and brushing his lips against her hair.

"So in other words, you love me _because_ I'm an idiot?"

"No." She pulled him close for a brief kiss. "I love you because you're _my_ idiot, and don't you ever forget that."


	6. Eyes of a Monster

He wished he had died, Ozai thought bitterly as he lay limp and useless on the ground, his power having been forcefully removed by the Avatar. Obviously this boy wasn't as weak as he'd thought...in fact, in order to do something like that he was not only strong, but nowhere near as benevolent as he claimed to be.

The Avatar's friends arrived to congratulate him on his victory, taunting Ozai in the proccess. _I wonder who is really the monster here,_ he thought.

Weeks later, his son...no, the new Fire Lord, came to visit his prison cell. He was a man now, no question about it. His stride was confident, his face resolute. The only part of him that remained the same was the scar, the mark of shame he'd given Zuko for refusing to fight him.

He remembered the look on his son's face that day, terrified and confused. Just like he'd felt when he was seconds away from death at the Avatar's hands, when he'd collapsed bonelessly against the plateau after having his bending taken from him.

The Avatar appeared as a monster to him that day, but only through borrowed eyes.

And now, as Ozai sat alone and disgraced in a prison cell with his proud, regal son looking down on him through the bars, he realized that in death, he would have been spared such humiliation and that perhaps the Avatar just might have had this planned all along.

_This_ was what he deserved.

* * *

_Yes, I know Aang didn't have Spiritbending planned all along, but that doesn't mean Ozai couldn't plausibly **think** so. :)_


	7. Father

Despite the hopes of his wife and son, Ozai never have a change of heart, never found that right path. He died, ill with madness and mad with illness, six years after the coronation of his son and three after the release of his daughter from the mental facility.

The day of the funeral, his children stood at his grave as the sun began to set, the other mourners having gone home hours ago.

"Azula, it's getting late," Zuko sighed. "Let's go back. Mother's worried about us."

Azula turned to face him. Years of therapy and mental fatigue had softened her features, but her eyes remained as sharp as they'd ever been.

"You're being much too calm about this, you know," she snapped. "Our father is _dead!_ Does that mean nothing to you?"

"Why should it? After all the lousy things he did and after all he put me through, I can't be bothered to feel sorrow for him," Zuko said bitterly.

"You were too stubborn to bury the hatchet, that's all."

"Don't you remember the way he treated me?" Zuko ran a finger across his now mostly-faded scar; even the most advanced skin treatments it would always be there as a reminder of what he'd had to endure, all he'd gone through to get to where he was now. "The _man burned my face_ as 'punishment' for daring to have a different opinion from his, sent me on a wild goose chase, and when I finally did earn his respect it was for the wrong reasons!"

"I know our father could be a harsh master," Azula said blithely, "but_ I loved him_."

Zuko clamped his hands on her shoulders and fixed his eyes on hers.

"Really, Azula." His voice was suddenly eerily calm. "After all the pressure he put on you to be his perfect child, twice as much so after I was declared a disgrace and all but kicked out of the family. After he treated you like a slave instead of a human being."

Azula trembled.

"...y-you're lying. Father...never treated me like a slave, he loved me, I was his favorite and you were always jealous!"

"Maybe I was back then, but the fact still stands that thanks to him, you spent your sixteenth birthday in a madhouse!" Zuko suddenly screamed. "You deserved better than that, Azula! Even at your worst you deserved better than that!"

She wrenched herself free of his grasp and balled her hands into fists.

"You _bastard_," she wept; Zuko caught her wrists before she could hit him. After a moment's struggle, she collapsed against his chest, sobs wracking her.

"Azula, I know you loved him," he said. "Deep down I did too, even when I hated him the most. But he still hurt us. All of us...he wanted power more than anything, and it made him incapable of loving even those closest to him."

"I know." She gripped fistfuls of his robe, her tears soaking through the fabric. "But...don't you remember the old days, Zuko? When we were still so young, and Mother and Father took us to Ember Island? We were a real family..."

"Those days are gone, Azula," he said. _But I do remember, and that's what hurts the most._


	8. Fatherhood

_Hey, Dad! Guess what-Suki had the baby last night! I'm a dad now, too!_

When the news comes, Hakoda doesn't have to think twice before boarding a ship to the Earth Kingdom.

Memories of Kya and their time together sre so far in the past, but now it seems like it was only yesterday: Kya announcing she was with his child, looking down at the tiny little creature in her arms and realizing he'd helped create it, Sokka's childish glee when they told him he was going to have a sibling, watching their children grow and play together and squabble, little Katara's first signs of waterbending ability, Sokka's desire to be a strong warrior just like his father.

He arrives to find Aang and Katara there, doing housework; they happily greet him. Suki proudly shows off their son. His grandson.

"Isn't he adorable? He looks just like his father!" She giggles "Let's hope that's where the resemblance ends, though," she adds, teasingly.

"Hey! I heard that!" Sokka yells from the next room. Suki rolls her eyes.

"Just come in and say hi to our guest, you dork." He does so, and his face immediately lights up.

"Dad."

He runs to greet his father and they hug warmly.

"You've got yourself a handsome boy," Hakoda says.

"He's mine," Sokka whispers. "I...I helped make that. And now I'm responsible for him for at least fifteen more years!" He laughs, then his face becomes drawn and pensive. He's scared, just like Hakoda was when he first laid eyes on _him_ all those years ago.

"You'll do just fine. You've faced many challenges before, and you've come out none worse for wear," Hakoda reassures him, and Sokka smiles.

"I'll do my best."


	9. Hilltops and Flowers

"Ty Lee, this is _so_ stupid."

"Come on, you haven't even given it a chance yet!" Ty Lee happily dragged her reluctant friend further up the hill. "Trust me, Azula, this is just what you need."

"I _need_ to be fixing what's wrong with my firebending!" Azula groaned. "I know what everyone's trying to do and it's not going to work."

"Now now, you remember what the physician said," Ty Lee scolded. "No more firebending until you're all better."

"And that's another thing, I'm sick of everyone treating me like I'm recovering from some really terrible sickness," Azula said.

"Well, you kind of are," Ty Lee said. "Ah, and here we are! Isn't it beautiful, Azula?"

"I guess it's nice, if you enjoy that sort of thing," Azula sighed, sitting down on a patch of grass that looked dry enough.

"How could you _not?_" Ty Lee plucked a fire lily from the ground. "It's so peaceful, you can see for miles and miles and the flowers are just _bursting_ and _alive_ with color..."

"Yeah, it's...it's not so bad," Azula said. "So we just sit here and look at the flowers all afternoon?"

"I was hoping we could, y'know, talk a little." Ty Lee sat down beside the princess and nonchalantly tucked the flower behind her ear. "But if you'd rather sit and look at the flowers that's okay too!"

Azula blushed, reaching up to poke her new accessory.

"And _how_ is this supposed to help me again?"

"The physician said the best cure for your condition is spending time with someone who loves you, that's how!" Ty Lee said, and kissed her before she could make any further protests.


	10. If I Just Lay Here

The years following the fall of Ozai were going to be anything but relaxed. Too much damage had accumulated over the years and there was so much to rebuild. The burdens lay heavy on the shoulders of the heroes; Zuko's days would be filled with restoring his people's good name, and Aang, when he wasn't helping Zuko, planned to spend his days attempting to rebuild his shattered culture.

Katara sighed, running a hand through the grass beneath her. The sun hung heavy in the late afternoon sky, soon it would set and give way to evening, which would become night, and when night became morning Aang would be leaving for the Fire Nation.

"I wish you didn't have to leave so soon," she murmured, even knowing he was deeply asleep and couldn't hear her. His head rested against hers as they lay together in the quiet green field. When was the last time since that day at the Jasmine Dragon that they were able to simply _be_ together like this? How long before they would be again?

Suddenly, he began to stir and opened his eyes. Katara smiled.

"You look like you slept well."

"Best afternoon's sleep I've ever had." Aang sighed happily, drawing her close for a kiss. Katara's arms wrapped tightly around him, and her anxieties about his leaving faded away.

The sun wasn't going anywhere for a while, and morning was still a long way off.


	11. Imitation Is the Sincerest Form

The room was filled with lit candles and flowers, and smack in the middle of the bed lay a pantsless Zuko. With a rose in his mouth.

Mai didn't know whether to be turned on or amused by this sight.

"You must have gone to a lot of trouble," she remarked with a small grin. Zuko flashed her the best _come-hither_ stare he could.

"Well, _hell-**owww**!_" He choked and winced as the rose's thorns poked his tongue and the roof of his mouth, he plucked it from his teeth and sputtered a bit. "Hello! Zuko here!" _Oh, real smooth_. Mai actually did laugh at this, and he pouted. "Come on, I was trying to be sexy here!"

"I'm _sorry_," she giggled. "But you had to know that would happen, right?"

"Sokka managed it just fine," Zuko groaned. "Until I came in and made him accidentally swallow the rose, but still."

"Yes, Suki told me about that little incident." Mai sat down on the bed and wrapped her arms around him. "But you're not Sokka."

"I know, I know..."

"Just be Zuko," she whispered, untying the sash of her robe. "I find him sexier than a hundred rooms full of flowers and candles any day."

The fabric slid away from her body, revealing nothing but bare skin underneath. Zuko grinned.

"Come here." He moved to grab her and plant a kiss on her, but she pinned him to the bed and lay atop him before he could.

"Maybe next time," she purred, blowing out the candle nearest the bed and straddling his hips.


	12. In Memorium

_"Remember the good times that we had? I let them slip away from us when things got bad How clearly I first saw you smilin' in the sun Wanna feel your warmth upon me, I wanna be the one_

_I will remember you Will you remember me? Don't let your life pass you by Weep not for the memories."_  
-Sarah McLachlan

* * *

He's a fully realized Avatar. He's stopped a century-long war without having to end a man's life. He's been hailed as the most powerful man in the world even though he's only thirteen years old.

But at the end of the day, Aang is still human and there are some things he cannot achieve. Like bringing people back from the dead.

It's getting dark, and he's exhausted from over a week of construction and rebuilding. Everyone else has gone to bed hours ago, but Aang won't be able to sleep until he's done. Wiping the sweat from his brow, he hangs the final tapestry and stands back to admire his...no, _their_ work. He couldn't have done this without his friends, after all.

The Southern Air Temple has been restored to its former glory, but it's now a memorial shrine to a lost race and their culture. Perhaps somewhere in the back of his mind, the child in him thought this might revive his people from the dead. But Aang knows better.

"Well, Gyatso?" He smiles, tears blurring his vision. "I did it...no one will ever forget you or the Air Nomads now, I promise." The tapestry staring back at him says nothing; it's a perfect likeness of his mentor right down to the last laugh line, but the smile is nothing but paint and fabric.

Aang sits down before the tapestry, buries his face in his arms and cries.

He's the Avatar. He has power that rivals what the former Fire Lord had.

But at the end of ths day Aang is still human, and his pain is as real as anyone else's.


	13. Loose Ends

She claimed she had no regrets the day she turned her back on Azula, but the closer she gets to the small room where her former princess is being kept, she begins to wonder if that was ever true.

It was hard to believe the haggard woman before her, limp stringy hair and plain robes, was once the woman she admired, respected and feared. She looked ten years older, but her eyes were like those of a lost child.

"Don't even bother." Her voice was tired, having lost its edge. "I know I deserve this, you came here to gloat, didn't you?"

"No." Ty Lee sat down on the bed, barely able to look at her. "I was worried about you."

"You left me." Azula sounded more heartbroken than angry, and it was all Ty Lee could do not to cry at the sound of it. "I thought you and Mai didn't care anymore, now that you're a Kyoshi warrior and she's engaged to my brother. I know I brought this on myself, you don't have to sugarcoat it."

"I'm not!" Ty Lee protested. "I came to see you because even after all that's happened I..."

Even though she trailed off, Azula seemed to know what she meant to say. A tiny smile crossed her worn features as she laced her fingers through the other girl's.

"Thank you, Ty Lee."


	14. Mothers and Daughters

Ursa was nothing like her own mother, and Mai had known this for years. Her mother was not the type to sit by the pond and play with the turtleducks, ruffle her childrens' hair, speak so casually with them.

It wasn't that Mai didn't love her mother, of course. Her relationship with her family was more than it used to be, but they'd never be as close as Zuko and Ursa had been and still were.

Ursa...Ursa was like no one she'd ever met, elegant and proper yet firey and casual and she could see why Zuko had become so somber and gloomy after her banishment all those years ago. Zuko always talked about how wonderful his mother was, and the more he did the more desire she felt to_ know_ this woman, she who was the most important woman in her boyfriend's life before he fell in love with Mai.

"So I guess this is where you tell me no woman is good enough for your little boy?" Mai asked wryly as the two sat in the courtyard, sipping tea. Ursa's laugh was soft, playful as she set down her cup.

"Mai, dear. You're strong, smart, clever and gave everything but your life to save my son," she said. "If anything, Zuko should be worried he's not good enough for _you!_" It was a comment made in jest, but Mai remembered how Ursa hadn't been exactly proud to hear a certain part of the story Zuko told her about his life between her banishment and the end of the war.

"Thank you, Princess Ursa, but Zuko knows what will happen if he ever does_ that_ again," Mai laughed.

"Dear, I've told you a thousand times. Please, just call me Ursa."

"R...right, sorry." Mai blushed. "So if Zuko asked me to marry him tomorrow..."

"You always had my blessing," Ursa said.

Mai closed her eyes.

"I...I wish I could talk this easily with my own mother," she sighed. "As much as I love Zuko, marrying him would make you and I family, and..." She trailed off. "I'm sorry, that must sound-"

"It's okay," Ursa said. "To tell you the truth, even if you and Zuko had never become close I would still want to know you." She placed her hand atop Mai's. "You're a wonderful girl, and I know your mother feels that way even if she doesn't show it so often."

Mai smiled, warmth spreading throughout her chest and her eyes misting over with contentment.

"Thank you, Ursa."


	15. Pillow Talk

Coming home was no more or less hard than Azula imagined it would be. Mother welcomed her with open arms, but no one would expect any less from her. Mai and Zuko treated her cordially, but she could still see resentment in their eyes when she faced them. Iroh was at least polite to her, offering games of Pai Sho and tea now and then. Everyone else seemed to regard her with disdain or indifference.

Except for Ty Lee, of course. Even after the betrayal at Boiling Rock, even though the acrobat was happy in her new role as a Kiyoshi Warrior, she remained at Azula's side like a faithful puppy. Like in the old days.

"Why?" Azula asked one evening as they sat on her bed, Azula in her favorite crimson dressing gown and Ty Lee in a pink robe. "I thought when you took a stand against me it meant you were getting smarter."

Ty Lee sighed.

"Look...I was _angry_ then, you were going to let those people die, you tried to hurt Mai," she said. "In prison, I thought this was what I needed, to leave you behind and start a new life. But when I heard about what happened to you I felt awful."

"Big deal, you're not the first person to pity poor crazy Azula," the princess snorted. Ty Lee shook her head and picked up a comb from the nightstand.

"Anyway, I made a deal with the Kiyoshi Warriors! It's a little unorthodox, but they said I could be an honorary member, and that way I can stay here in the Fire Nation with you and help you get better!"

Azula almost laughed.

"You really are an idiot. How can you want to help a person who treated you like a slave? Are you secretly the Avatar's twin sister or something?"

Ty Lee put the comb down and wrapped her arms around Azula.

"Because even when you were an awful person and I hated what you were doing, I loved _you_."

"L-love?" Azula sputtered. "Ty Lee, no, you can't love someone like me, that's called...well, I don't know the name for it, but it's not normal!"

"Since when was _I_ ever normal?"

"...good point." Azula smiled a little. "You really mean that? You...care that much about me?"

Ty Lee smiled, stroking the other girl's cheek.

"I always have."

Azula blushed, closing her eyes.

"Well, I suppose you could do worse," she said, remembering those empty-headed boys at the beach. _Much worse_. She dragged the other girl under the covers with her. "Goodnight, Ty Lee."

"Sleep well!"


	16. Restored

His greatest regret would always be how it ended with Sozin.

Looking back, Roku realizes that no matter what he did, whether or not he'd been able to stop the war, their bond still would have shattered. Not a day goes by where he doesn't wish he could go back in time and stop Sozin.

But now the war is over, and he couldn't be prouder of Aang. _Be decisive_, he'd advised the young Avatar, and in refusing to compromise his beliefs it was exactly what Aang had done. The war had ended and that was the most important thing.

He's proud of Zuko as well. Somehow he'd always known his great-grandson would find the right path, even if he'd taken a long time to get there. He'd made so many mistakes along the way, but he'd come into his own as a man at last.

Suddenly, he sees the two embrace and his heart feels warm. Without realizing it, Aang and Zuko have mended the bond between Avatar and Fire Lord that had been shattered one hundred years ago.

"Sozin, I miss you," he murmurs, "I'll always wish it hadn't ended so badly between us. But I wouldn't trade what we had for anything in the world."


	17. Solitary Ashes

He was fifty-three years old, and he was dying.

All his hard work had been undone within his son's first two years as Fire Lord. Soft, weak, pathetic _Zuko_ had just been declared the strongest ruler in Fire Nation history. Zuko's children called _Iroh _"grandfather". His daughter hadn't spoken to him in years, last he heard of her she was living somewhere on Kyoshi Island with that circus freak friend of hers. His most trusted men were either dead, imprisoned or simple merchants now. Even his wife regarded him coldly, preferring the company of that Water Tribe chief.

He was fifty-three years old, and he was dying alone.

Ozai coughed, not bothering to wipe the blood that sprayed from his mouth as he did. It wouldn't be long now, the physician said.

The most humiliating thing about all of this, Ozai realized, was that his _fool_ of an older brother was going to outlive him. Even at seventy-four, Iroh still had the energy and good health of a man half his age.

_Maybe that damn tea of his isn't so useless after all._

All his life, he'd strived to be like his grandfather Sozin. A strong ruler with the power to wipe out an entire race, beloved by his people. A long life followed by a peaceful death within the comfort of his palace.

What would Sozin think if he could see him now, Ozai wondered. Suddenly, the door creaked open; Ozai craned his neck painfully to see who would have bothered coming to see him.

"Father."

"Z...Zuko?" Ozai frowned. "What are_ you_ doing here?" He coughed. "H...have you come to _gloat..._over my _wretched state_...?"

Zuko stepped over to his father's bedside, his face somber.

"The physician said you didn't have much time left, and no one else came to see you," he said. The former Phoenix King growled softly.

"Spare me your _pity_, boy. I know how _happy_ the thought of my death has made you since the day you turned your coat!"

"Father..." Zuko closed his eyes. "I had a whole speech prepared for this day. About how angry I was with you for the way you treated me, for what you indirectly did to Azula, for all the pain you caused not just us, but the whole world," he said. "But it wouldn't make any difference whatsoever, and we both know it. It's too late for any of that to matter anymore."

"_Zuko..._"

"Instead, all I'm going to say is goodbye, Father." Zuko smiled sadly, gently stroking Ozai's pale, wrinkled forehead. He remained standing there, though, and didn't move until his father had breathed his last.

He was a horrible ruler, the worst father in the history of fathers, and a terrible person.

But in the eyes of his kindhearted son, even someone like that didn't deserve to die alone at fifty-three years old.


	18. Stay Tonight

Visitors were never permitted to stay overnight, it was a strict policy the mental health facility hadn't changed since it opened.

"I understand," Ty Lee said. She didn't know why they had to tell her; the last few times she'd visited Azula she'd barely stayed an hour. Even wearing her trademark pink and never saying a word about the Kiyoshi Warriors didn't help, the princess would barely ever look at her and when she did her face was heavy with hurt.

But tonight was different. The first thing Ty Lee saw when she entered Azula's room was that Azula was crying, and before she could even say hello her arms were suddenly full of Azula, sobbing and begging.

"Don't leave. You _can't leave._" The words were biting and angry yet sad and lost at the same time and Ty Lee held the girl as close as humanly possible. _It's okay, I'm here, I'll never leave you again, I promise._ Kissing Azula's forehead, her tearstained cheeks, and finally her lips...the princess stiffened in shock before returning the kiss.

"Stay tonight."

"I can't, the doctors won't let me."

"_Stay_."

The doctors reluctantly made an exception to their strict policy that night.


	19. Surprises

Azula had come to accept that Ty Lee was full of surprises. This was sometimes a good thing, particularly in bed. But when Ty Lee did things like decorating their house with seashells and pink curtains or arranging surprise family gatherings, Azula longed for a dull and boring lover, someone who wouldn't even try a new flavor of tea before weighing the pros and cons.

This time, the acrobat had outdone herself.

"This is Ming! I found her hiding in one of the old refuge camps of Ba Sing Se, she lost her parents in the war and she's got nowhere else to go," Ty Lee said. Azula stared incredulously at the trembling little girl standing before her. She a was ragged, dirty little thing and couldn't have been more than five or six years old. She was barefoot, and both her beige dress and the doll she held in her arms looked like they'd seen better days.

"Please tell me you want me to help her find a new home," Azula threatened, but Ty Lee's smile only grew. "_Spirits_, Ty Lee, what made you think this was a good idea?"

"Oh, come on, Azula, she's lonely and cold and she needs a home!" Ty Lee pleaded. "How can we turn her away, just look at that little face!"

Ming glanced warily at Azula, clutching her only possession more tightly. Azula sighed.

"See? She knows who I am...or rather, recognizes who I was. Just because you, Aang, my brother and everyone else knows I've changed for the better doesn't mean everyone else will!"

"But you'll get to know her, she'll get to know you and she'll see what a good person you are now!" Ty Lee said. "Right, Ming? What do you say, you want the reformed Fire Nation Princess to be one of your new mommies?"

"Oh, please. Even the smallest, dumbest children know a real family doesn't have two mothers," Azula said sharply.

"No one else wanted me," Ming said pitifully. "You'll have to do."

"Don't I feel loved." The princess ran a hand through her hair and sighed. "Ty Lee, this is a really bad idea and we're going to regret it."

"Azula, as much as I love you, now is _not_ an acceptable time for you to be acting like such a grumpy-bum!" Ty Lee said sternly. "We're not letting this cute little girl die starving in the streets, and that's that!"

It was rare that Ty Lee ever put her foot down like that, but when she did it never failed to stupefy Azula out of offering any sort of rebuttal.

"Very well, then." She pulled Ty Lee aside, out of Ming's earshot. "But, if this turns out to be the worst decision we could have made, we're passing her off to the Avatar and his wife. Got it?"

"If you say so, but I'm telling you this _won't_ be a mistake! Just think positive, 'zula!"

Azula smiled thinly.

"I'll try," she said. Ty Lee gave her a brief kiss, then ran off to show Ming her new room.


	20. Teachings

"So how does it feel to be back?"

"I could ask you the same thing, Prince...I mean, _Fire Lord_ Zuko," Jeong Jeong laughed. "We're somewhat alike, you and I."

"I guess we are," Zuko said. "The truth is, I'm still not sure I should be here. Everyone welcomed me with open arms, but I don't ifeel/i like I should be Fire Lord."

"Just as I don't feel I should be a Firebending teacher again." The older man set aside his teacup and sighed. "After my failure with Zhao..." _May he rot in hell_ was an added sentiment both men shared.

"We came back because the Fire Nation needs us," Zuko said. "They put their faith in us, former traitors, and now it's up to us to prove we're worthy."

"No, that's you," Jeong Jeong teased, "I only came back because you and the Avatar insisted!" He looked down. "Besides, what good would it do for Firebenders to learn from an embittered old man like me? I can only teach what I know, and what I know is that fire brings only destruction and pain."

"That's not true," Zuko said. "In fact, it's completely the opposite."

"Oh?" An amused, but disbelieving smile played at the corners of Jeong Jeong's mouth. Zuko paused, remembering what the Sun Warriors had told him. iI promised to keep their secret, but now that my father is no longer a threat...I'm sure they wouldn't mind me telling someone who really needs to hear it./i

"Before the war ended I met these people who taught me the truth about fire." Zuko closed his eyes, concentrated and a small flame blossomed in the palms of his hands. "See, in the wrong hands, fire_ is_ pain and destruction. Because of my great-grandfather Sozin, that's how it was for a hundred years." He let the flame grow brighter, making it dance slightly in his hands. "But these people, they taught me that in its natural state, fire is _life_. It's energy, it's..." He remembered Aang's words and smiled. "It's like a little heartbeat."

The former deserter nodded slowly, taking in every word. The flame in Zuko's hands slowly diminished and faded to nothing.

"These people made me swear not to tell anyone about their existence and hidden village," the Fire Lord said. "But I really want to take you to meet them someday. Meeting them really opened my eyes."

Jeong Jeong smiled, a genuine smile this time.

"If they will allow it, I would be honored."


	21. The Sins of the Forefather

He was standing in a dark void with someone calling his name, someone strangely familiar. _Am I in another fever dream?_ he thought, though he hadn't felt at all sick when he'd gone to bed. His next guess would be the Spirit World, but only few people could visit there and under certain conditions. Zuko turned to see the ghostly figure of Fire Lord Sozin beside him, and his eyes widened.

"What's going on?"

"Come with me, Fire Lord Zuko," Sozin said, "for there is something you need to see. I warn you, though, it will be very upsetting."

Zuko sighed.

"No _thanks_, I know what you did and why everyone worshipped you for so long. I've found my own way now, and-"

"That's why you need to see this," Sozin interrupted. "Do not worry. I don't intend to harm you or make you question your choices." Before Zuko could speak another word, they were leaving the void and stepping into the light. Zuko immediately recognized the scene before them as the Southern Air Temple.

"This is where Aang grew up," Zuko whispered. "But why-"

"Watch, Zuko." And suddenly the carefree scene before him changed to an image of Sozin himself betraying Roku, commanding many war ships and then back to the Southern Air Temple where benders and soldiers alike fought for their lives until the smoke cleared and all that remained of the Air Nomads were their bodies. Zuko shuddered, digging his nails into his palm.

"I've heard this story a million times," he choked.

"But not this part." The scene flashed forward to a century later, a frail skeleton, and-

_Aang._ Zuko felt his heart drop into his stomach. He was seeing the happy flashbacks of Aang's childhood years, the stories Aang had told him mixed with memories of himself going to the ends of the world to capture the Airbender, then finally fading back to Aang sobbing over his mentor's corpse and the realization that his people were gone, he was _alone_. When the scene faded away, Zuko realized he himself was crying.

"Sozin," he spat, "why did you _show_ me all this? Don't you think I know what a jerk I was and how Aang suffered? Did you want to make sure I spent the rest of my life regretting it now that you could see I was learning to let go of my guilt?"

"Silence!" Sozin gripped his descendent by his shoulders, looking into his eyes. "I brought you here because in the last moments of my life, my biggest regret was betraying Roku and starting this war. And now that you've helped to correct my mistake, I wanted you to see my regrets."

"_Why?_" Zuko sobbed.

"Because Roku was my soul mate, just like Avatar Aang is yours," Sozin said. "And I couldn't rest well until I knew for sure that you wouldn't make the same mistake I did." He reached out to wipe away his great-grandson's tears. "And given your reaction, I can tell you won't."

"Never," Zuko said, sniffling. "Aang is one of four people who mean more to me than the world, and I'd sooner end myself than betray him."

Sozin nodded.

"Good. Now I can finally rest." The ghostly image faded along with the void, and Zuko woke up. The sun was rising and even as he wiped away his remaining tears, he knew it was going to be a beautiful day.


	22. Welcome Home

Even in the new era of love and peace, ugly disputes still popped up in the Fire Nation. They were usually easy to get under control, but one particular altercation was dangerously close to starting a civil war between two villages. And of course, it was up to Zuko and Aang to intervene.

Zuko sighed as he made his way to his and Mai's sleeping quarters. He never liked dealing with potential wars, but right now he especially didn't want to be away from home.

"About time you got back."

And Zuko immediately forgot how tired he was. Smiling, he ran to embrace his wife as she got out of their bed...only to realize a second late that there was a lot more between them then when he'd last hugged her.

"Woah! _H-how_ long was I gone again?" he stammered, pulling back and fixing his eyes on her stomach. Mai smiled sheepishly, resting her hand over the generous swell.

"I know," she said. "Last week I woke up one morning and _your_ robe was too small for me." Zuko laughed, kneeling down and running his hands over her belly. "Hey there," he whispered, "it's me, Daddy! I hope you're doing okay in there and being nice to your mother. I just got back from-"

He was cut off by a soft thump against his hand.

"It kicked." He frowned playfully. "What's it doing up so late?"

"Welcome to my world," Mai sighed, ruffling his hair. "And I think we're well past the stage of calling our baby an _it_, Zuko. I'm pretty sure we're going to have a son!"

"What did Katara say?" Zuko asked; Mai and the Waterbender had become close friends in the last few years, and Mai had rejected one of the palace midwives in favor of her.

"She's pretty sure it's a boy, too," Mai said. "Sorry if you were hoping for a daughter you could spoil." She tweaked his nose playfully, and he blushed.

"I never said I specifically wanted a girl...just that it might be nice," he said as he stood up. "I also said a son would be great, too, remember?"

"Well, as long as he's healthy." Mai yawned as she leaned against him. "Welcome home, by the way. We both missed you," she said. He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her softly.

"Don't worry. I don't think I'll be going anywhere again for a long time," he whispered, giving her stomach an affectionate pat.

"So how _did_ things go over there, anyway?" Mai asked as they slid under the covers. Zuko sighed, remembering how tired he was.

"I'll tell you in the morning, if I tried now we'd just be up all night and you need your rest." Sure enough, the moment he finished his sentence she'd fallen asleep. Zuko laughed softly, kissing the top of her head as he draped his arm across her waist and joined her in a much-needed slumber.


	23. Will You Stay?

_"You won't forget me, will you?" she teased. "Even while you're busy doing your Avatar stuff?" Her husband laughed, kissing the tip of her nose._

_"The day I forget you is the day Momo forgets he likes peaches," he said. "I promise I won't be gone that long this time, though." She embraced him, and he buried his face in her hair. "When the west wind blows, meet me in the field."_

Aang wasn't one to make promises lightly, and there were ones he'd broken for one reason or another. Sometimes he hated making promises because he knew as well as anyone else that no matter how hard you tried to keep one, something beyond your control could break it for you.

But Katara knew he would keep this one.

_His last night there, she took her hair down and they sat in the field together, gazing into each other's eyes._

_"I'll miss you," she whispered, and he shook his head._

_"Just think about now," he murmured, drawing her down. Her body rose against his as he kissed her; slowly they undressed and their kisses deepened into something more._

Three months later she stood patiently where he'd said to. The west wind was coming, and the sunset painted the field a brilliant gold. He would come today, and she had a surprise for him.

"Katara!"

They ran to each other, meeting in the middle of the field in a warm embrace.

"Aang," she murmured. "Welcome home..."

"I missed you," he said.

"Remember the night before you left?" she asked, and he nodded with a small grin, how could they _forget?_ Katara smiled, taking his hand and resting it on her abdomen. Aang's eyes widened in shock, then he grinned more widely than she'd ever seen anyone grin.

"Will you stay this time? For good?" she asked that night, and he said yes.

Many years later, an older Aang and Katara sat peacefully off to the side of the field, watching their children run and play as the sun set over the field.

He'd more than kept his promise.


End file.
